


Fever

by snoozingsnuffles



Series: 30 Day Multi-fandom Hurt/Comfort Challenge - November 2019 [5]
Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: (somewhat), Caring Hannibal Lecter, Fever, M/M, Sickfic, Will Graham Has Encephalitis, set during season 1
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-05
Updated: 2019-11-05
Packaged: 2021-01-23 16:54:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,450
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21323512
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/snoozingsnuffles/pseuds/snoozingsnuffles
Summary: Will is struck with an encephalitis-related fever. Hannibal goes to check on him.
Relationships: Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter
Series: 30 Day Multi-fandom Hurt/Comfort Challenge - November 2019 [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1533236
Comments: 5
Kudos: 128





	Fever

Will was never late to their meetings. Will wasn’t rude, not like the majority of the human population was. Hannibal liked that about him, among many other things. Hannibal liked Will, which in itself was surprising.

Though it wasn’t unexpected. The stench of encephalitis hung over Will Graham like a dense cloud; heavy and present. It was progressing quickly, and quite nicely. Every time Hannibal met with him, the scent got stronger and stronger. Observing its effects was interesting to say the least.

He knew even before he pulled up to Will’s house in Wolf Trap that was why no-one had seen him for days, even when Jack Crawford specifically requested his presence at a crime scene, he didn’t show. Even though Hannibal was the one to let Will’s encephalitis continue to grow and spread undetected, he was disappointed. He had been quite proud of his latest piece, and he wanted Will to see it, to dissect it, to read it like an open book. It was always wonderful to hear Will pick apart his crime scenes with amazing accuracy.

Even as he hovered on the porch, the sweet stench lingered in the air. It was even stronger now. Soon, hospitalization would be inevitable. Hannibal didn’t want Will to die – souls like him were hard to come by, after all. No, he would intervene before it got to that point. But everything was progressing as Hannibal expected it to.

The door was unlocked, and he let himself in. Immediately, Will’s pack was at his heels, some yapping and some just curiously sniffing. His nose wrinkled, barely noticeable to anyone but himself, and he reached into cooler he was carrying. Expecting treats, the hounds and mutts alike sat back on their hunches, gazing up at Hannibal was expectant eyes. He dethatched a sausage from the chain of links he had brought for them and dropped it to the ground, followed by another and another. The dogs went eagerly, their attention off him now as they tore into the meat. Some carried chunks of flesh off to remote corners of the house, while others sat at his feet and chewed happily.

Will hadn’t heard his entrance, but no matter. He was defiantly here, and he hadn’t left the house going on the smell. He would be upstairs, most likely in bed and unconscious. Hannibal ascended the stairs.

His suspicions were proven right as he entered Will’s bedroom. The man was laid on the bed, his limbs sprawling as his chest rose up and down, almost as if he had just run a marathon. He was soaked in sweat, his grey t-shirt almost black as it clung to his body and the sheets around him were drenched.

Will’s loyal dog, Winston, lay on the floor at the foot of the bed, his head positioned as if he were keeping an eye on his master. He looked up as Hannibal hovered in the doorway, but he didn’t move, or gravitate to his feet like the other dogs had. He simply stayed where he was, by Will’s side.

“Will.” Hannibal said, walking over to the bed. Winston stood then, but only to get out of Hannibal’s way. He moved to the other side of the bed and sat down, watching.

Will stirred slightly, but he didn’t look conscious at all. His brow furrowed and he moaned lightly, but Hannibal could see he was still pretty far under.

“Will.” Hannibal said again, gently shaking his shoulder to rouse him. It worked, and Will slowly blinked his eyes open, squinting against the light. Hannibal quickly moved towards the windows to block out the sunlight, hopefully providing Will with some relief.

“Hannibal?” Will croaked. He squinted up at the doctor, confusion evident on his face. “What are you doing here?”

“You missed our appointment.” Hannibal said. He pulled a chair from the other side of the room over to the bedside and sat down. “Jack Crawford called and you didn’t answer. I came to see if you were ok.”

“Oh.” Will said sheepishly. He began to sit up, a palm pressed flat against his forehead to fight off the inevitable dizziness. “I’m sorry. I think I’ve come down with some kind of flu.”

“Evidently.” Hannibal reached into his thermos bag and pulled out a soup he had prepared. “I made chicken soup. Would you like to shower and change first before you eat? I’m assuming you haven’t eaten in a little while.”

“Oh. Yeah.” Will grimaced as he picked at his sweaty shirt. “Thanks.”

“It’s no problem at all.” Hannibal said with a reassuring quirk of his lips. “If you would like, I can change your bedding while you wash.”

Will seemed to blush, but he turned away to hide it. “You don’t have to do that.” He mumbled. He stood, and immediately swayed on his feet. Hannibal stood and placed his hands on Will’s shoulders to steady him.

“I would like to. Think of it as something a doctor does for his patient, or a favour from one friend to another.”

Blue eyes blinked rapidly as Will attempted to clear his vision. “I guess. I don’t really feel up to it right now.”

“Then I will change them.” Hannibal said. “Do you need help getting to the bathroom?”

“I’ll be fine. Thank you.” Will shook Hannibal’s hands off his shoulders and Hannibal let them fall to his sides. Will groggily began to walk to the bathroom; a hand ran along the wall to support him as he went. Winston trotted after him, keeping a distance so Will didn’t trip over the hound.

As soon as he heard the bathroom door click shut, Hannibal got to work. He stripped the sheets from the bed quickly and efficiently and deposited them in the hamper in the corridor. He imagined Will would need help with his laundry too, as the basket was close to overflowing. Perhaps he would offer to take care of it once Wil had eaten.

He found his way to the laundry cupboard easily enough, just as he heard the shower click on in the bathroom. Hannibal surveyed the various sheets and linins and picked out plain white sheets. Everything in the cupboard varied on a scale from white to grey, all were cotton or a polyester blend. They felt alien on his fingers, Hannibal being much used to silks and finer fabrics.

The clean sheets were on the bed by the time Will stumbled back into his room, and he immediately sank into them with Hannibal’s guidance. “Thank you.” Will mumbled again. “Sorry.”

“Never be sorry for being unwell.” Hannibal assured him. “It is a natural part of the human experience.”

“This doesn’t feel natural.” Will mumbled as he dragged a wary hand down his face, clearing the sleep from his eyes. “This feels like a punishment.”

“I doubt it is punishment.” Hannibal took a seat at the side of the bed again and reached into the thermos. He pulled out a bowl of soup for Will as well as one for himself, accompanied by his own cutlery. “Chicken soup – an old family recipe. It does wonders for colds and flu.”

It really was chicken soup – it was hard to pass off human flesh as white meat, but in Will’s current state, Hannibal found it unlikely he would notice. Still, Will was a very observant man.

“Thank you.” Will mumbled as he unclipped the lid from the Tupperware. Steam billowed out and up towards Will’s face, and he seemed to welcome the warmth. He had begun to shiver. 

“Here.” Before Hannibal started on his own soup, he took a blanket from the floor and wrapped it around his friend’s shoulders. Will accepted it gratefully and snuggled into the warmth.

“Thank you.” He mumbled before he picked up his spoon and started sipping on the soup. Hannibal watched him out of the corner of his eye before he picked up his own spoon.

“It’s good.” Will said. “You don’t have to stay, you know. I don’t want you catching whatever this is.”

“I have an exceptionally strong immune system, I doubt I will.” Hannibal assured. “Besides, I am your doctor, you are my patient.”

Will raised an eyebrow. “You’re my psychiatrist.” He corrected.

“As my patient, and my friend, I care both about your mind and your physical body as well.” Hannibal shot him a warm, reassuring smile. Will mirrored it, but quickly averted his gaze to his soup.

“I appreciate the company.” Will admitted. “It’s been quite lonely. Even though I have the dogs.”

“Nothing beats human company.” Hannibal agreed.

“Thank you. For dropping by, I mean.”

Hannibal smiled. “The pleasure is all mine.” He said. 

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback welcome!


End file.
